


The Glow of Your Missing Half

by melonmeelon



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst with a Happy Ending, But human, Fluff and Angst, Gen, High School, Isolation, Minor Injuries, Modern AU, Swearing - minor, Tags May Change, This wasn't meant to be angst but OOPS, Victoria the elf from Breathtaking, characters from the d&d story a bit ago, drunk father, lots of old lore but modernized and everyone is human, mainly Alec and Ovien, minor Victoria and Artemis, minor drunkenness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-21
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:29:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24305941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melonmeelon/pseuds/melonmeelon
Summary: The soulmate system is the universes way of saying you aren't alone, it's the glow of the eternal beings smiling as you found your piece to the puzzle that is your life. Oh yeah, and Alec has a photoshop final due soon.
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Female Character, Original Female Character/Original Male Character, Original Male Character/Original Male Character





	1. Chapter 1: Glow

**Author's Note:**

> Soooo multiple chapters... let's see how this turns out. First attempt at writing multiple chapters for this AU! For these characters, in general, to be completely honest, their D&D world is a lot easier to write it seems, but! Their personalities are still the same, so I hope I can make this work =)   
> I'll update this faster than a lot of writers, I'm on a roll with this AU and almost done school so you'll definitely see me bein' speedy and such. This will probably be about three chapters, with chapter two being the angstiest, but it won't last long.

There was poetry about the stars and the universe, but none were really like the scene that sat in front of him at age 13. It was on a game, something simple to pass the time, but these words stuck with him.  
"and the universe said I love you  
and the universe said you have played the game well  
and the universe said everything you need is within you  
and the universe said you are stronger than you know  
and the universe said you are the daylight  
and the universe said you are the night  
and the universe said the darkness you fight is within you  
and the universe said the light you seek is within you  
and the universe said you are not alone  
and the universe said you are not separate from every other thing  
and the universe said you are the universe tasting itself, talking to itself, reading its own code  
and the universe said I love you because you are love,"  
It was beautiful and made him think of so many things at once, that of the stars - something so beautiful, dangerous, and curious that he could watch all night - and planets, of the religion which he studied, of his family, of soulmates and the inevitable glow that happens upon their meet. Now at 15, he knew the legend word for word, he'd read the books and their many interpretations, he'd even read the Hinduist version of them, soulmates were nothing new. At the same time, he knew many people who had missed these chances, and never met their soulmate again, leading to great despair and disappointment. So, he wouldn't lie, he was not entirely stoked to deal with the whole soulmate thing. To be truthful it was borderline terrifying.

The blonde might not have been stoked about it but _god _he couldn't be angry for long, just the thought that "someone is there for me," the thought that the universe used the soulmate system as a literal way of telling each and every individual that they aren't alone. That whether it platonic, romantic, or otherwise you will be _loved _unconditionally and truly for who you are. It was reassuring, no matter how annoying it was. He didn't know why the words from the virtual world two years ago hit him so much, but as he sat back and stalled on his photoshop class' homework, he thought about the universe. His biggest inspiration really. The photoshop final was supposed to be meaningful, something that could be looked back on in many years and admired by the new freshman, and he only had a few loose words for inspiration on a piece of paper, rather spinning in his chair to stare at the window at the dark road. There was nothing actually out there, just a house that someone lives in but never comes out of. Yet another unsolved mystery of his world.____

____There were lots of rumors based on the huge property. The two-story home that's worth over 1.3 million and owners who have only been seen twice in the past 10 years, it was bizarre. Sure, some people have been seen in the area, delivering mail when the overflow became problematic, or the owner of the grocery store down the road who brings monthly groceries over (though often it seemed more alcohol than food), people had been there but seeing the ones who lived there was a different story. Everyone knew who lived there, but no one personally knew the people living there. It was the infamous Lakes family, a millionaire born into enough money to be set for life who began spiraling down the path of drinking constantly over the past two decades and his teenage son. His son was the real mystery. The grocery owner's daughter, his friend Ewelina, had said her dad had seen the boy in the window, stating that he looked like a dragon in a boy's body. The eyes of an ancient, strong, and terror-inducing beast, but the body of a 16-year-old covered in bandages and black clothes. The man said he had only seen him for a second, but the look of fear in his eyes in the second-story window as the older gave the millionaire his groceries, that look shocked him to his core. The grocer really hadn't been the same about delivering groceries ever since. The blond thought it was probably BS, but he went along with it because what friend questioned his best friend's dad's memory on a Tuesday afternoon._ _ _ _

____"Alec, I'm telling you, you are their literal neighbor, try to get a look at the guy for me," She had joked, but while he fiddled with his big project, he couldn't help but think of the kid, well teen. Being trapped on your property with your drunk father for a solid 16 years - accept for maybe two times, where one was a news article showing the two smiling holding up a fuzzy sign about 6 odd years ago and the more recent being a runaway attempt from dragon-boy - had to do something to you. The escape attempt was a mere six months ago, and while Alec had missed it, his mother was right in the small town's square when it happened. She had vaguely the same description as Ewelina's dad, but still. He couldn't imagine being stuck inside with no influence from the outside for that long. Did he know about the soulmate system? A drunk father probably didn't teach him about that. How did he get his education? Was there someone in the house to make sure nothing bad happened to the kid while the father was MIA? How come the guy didn't try to escape again after that one time, had he simply given up? Did he have a support system like Alec did? Was there anyone to go to when he got overwhelmed? His mindless daydreaming was making him think more than his assignment, and upon realizing this he simply sighed, running his hand down his glasses-framed face and turning back to the computer, the glowing screen hitting his face. Tonight was going to be longer than he anticipated..._ _ _ _

____The night lasted far too long, going on for what seemed like an eternity. He was right, and god did he regret procrastinating on the final. "The easiest final," they said, his gullible mind had nodded along. Granted, it was his fault entirely for not brainstorming earlier, but still, he was extremely annoyed upon noticing that it was already 2 am when he got his final sketch done. The rest was a project he'd save for another day, probably tomorrow, and the teenager just wanted to go to _sleep _. So that's what he did, well, almost. In his sleep-deprived-mildly-annoyed state, he huffed and changed into pajama pants, but before he could get his well-deserved and much wanted shut-eye he noticed something different about the house across the street.___ _ _ _

______The upstairs light was on, the one facing the house, and the same window that his best friend's dad had seen the dragon-boy in._ _ _ _ _ _

_______Lakes son's room. Even stranger, however, was that the sun-blocking ugly grey curtains were gone, and replacing them was a lightly illuminated room, a silhouette leaning out. As someone with a sister in the construction business, he could tell that with the un-updated window frames it probably wasn't smart per se, but the kid was there. Almost as if his random procrastination thoughts had lured him into sight. Whatever it was that brought him out, Alec couldn't help but thank it because as he stood there in his pajama pants and a limp toothbrush in his mouth, he couldn't help but also lean out his own, more-secure, window. The blond looked like an absolute fool and he knew that, but the fact that their one small-town mystery was showing his face at 2 am blinded those thoughts. It felt strange to be simply watching his neighbor across the street, but he looked so at peace, untamed black curls caught in the slight breeze and if his glasses were a prescription more intense he could probably see the small smile on the guy's face. It was strange, yet calm, and something in his mind argued that he should keep this moment quiet from the many town-gossips. That part of his mind won.  
* - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - *  
Just across the street, stood the teenage boy, leaning out his window like he had done every night for the past month. A whole month of lousy sleep schedules and late-night calls on the computer with his friend Victoria. A terrible month, really. The only thing worse than his father's drunken state was the current withdrawal he was going through - curtesy to the grocer man who brings their monthly rations - at the moment, his life was going horribly. Instead of blackout drunk days, his father was experiencing serious insomnia along with awful headaches and mood swings that made him want to just hide away in his room. That's mostly what he did anyway, stay in his room with his own mini-fridge, computer, and a small library, doing whatever it took to try and figure out a way to escape this life, but still, his father was tortuous. A whole month since Vicky had last sneaked him out too, and he was itching to get back into the real world. Not the small town he saw from his window, no, but rather the fields right outside of town or stargazing in her pickup truck bed covered in blankets and pillows. _That _was what made the past month so bad, the fact that the outside world was so close yet so far. He simply had to wait until the moon was high up and the late-night stragglers went inside to just lean outside and pretend his life was different, pretend his month hadn't _sucked _so bad. Pretend that maybe he had the life of his blond neighbor who always seemed nonstop or his friend who had to dodge paparazzi so much she made a game out of it in public. He wanted a _life _. So many people wish to be rich like his family is, but really what they should be wishing for is freedom, something money really couldn't seem to buy._______ _ _ _ _

____________There were rumors about his family and their life, that both he and his dad were drunkards hiding from the press, that Mr. Lakes had not necessarily sheltered his son but rather locked him in a room with no access to the world outside, that they were running out of money and both decided they'd rather waste away in the comfort of their home, none of which were true. First off, he would never go near alcohol - he knew what it could do to a man - he'd been living with a drunk for the past 8 years, it was nothing but problems. Secondly, what a lot of people didn't understand about the teen in the Lakes house is that he still had his computer, his phone, it wasn't like he didn't know anything about life outside his house like everyone thought. He wasn't a kid locked in a room with a candle and match to give him light, he had everything many of the normal teens in his town had, which seems to be something no one understands. He still woke up to his phone vibrating loudly at 8 am because Vicky wants to talk about the call she and her girlfriend had, opening the phone met with a, "Oh my god Ovien you'll never guess what happened," and simply sighing in response. There weren't "breakfast bells" that chime in the morning reminding him to grab the eggs from the birds out in the backyard, so he could make an omelet, he just existed like anyone else, just more locked up._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________The last "gossip-theory" about his life was the one that hurt him the most, even if it didn't seem harmful. The people on the town made it seem like he chose to be hidden for as long as he could remember, not thrown into a confusing life where he had to go from being a six-year-old giggling at important business meetings to making midnight calls where he would sob into the phone asking his friend, his one friend, if she could _please _just take him away from this hellhole that everyone called a house. The idealogy that sitting in the house with his father was _comforting _, that having to live on the second floor while his father ruled the first with litter and liquor, that the house with the broken kitchen fridge and broken lightbulbs was a feeling he enjoyed, found comfort in? That was the rumor that made his head spin. Why would anyone in their right mind believe that that was okay, that he just accepted that? Why would anyone believe he didn't want to leave this place? Better yet, why didn't he just leave? That is a question with a much more complex answer, one that often made him pace and wish he was anyone but himself, but he couldn't leave. He'd tried that already, and it was terrifying, being stuck without any real-life social interaction - save for a few nights per month - had left him without the social skills to not make a fool of himself, to not wreck his families already shaky appearance by simply being himself. He was scared that if he left he'd be hurt, hurt far much worse than staying would. Anytime he picked up the duffel bag by the window, the one he'd had packed for months now, all these fears, insecurities, everything in between hit him again. Yes, he was good at things, but there was a _reason _he did online school, that he hadn't run away sooner, that he hadn't truly opened up to Victoria even after all this time, that he hadn't called someone to help him, he was weak and felt so lost whenever he tried, whether he was lost in his mind or physically on a map. How could eight years of isolation _not _affect someone? It made him feel awful, he needed to get away, but he couldn't. He wasn't going to be the one finding comfort anytime soon._________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________At 2 am, however, the dark was comforting. He was already tired, the breeze was nice, and he could simply look at the stars and stop thinking for a few minutes. He could take his god-awful sun blocking curtains off their rack and lean out on the splintery white wood of the window frame. It was the calmest part of his day and the part he looked forward to the most every night. Ovien could take out the man-bun in his now mullet (he really needed to cut it one of these days) and roll up his dark sleeves, letting his patch-covered arms see the sky. Most nights he'd simply breathe in the night air and exist, while others he'd relive memories and think of random theories and contemplate anything that crossed his mind. It was a part of his day that made him feel alright._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________That day though had been awful, online schooling was full of final projects, group miscommunications, meetings, and the sound of his father vomiting and then cleaning filled the background. It was one of the times where whenever he wasn't talking with a classmate he was on a call with Victoria, venting about everything and nothing at all, just wishing for some peace. Not peace and quiet, no he didn't want that, but he definitely wanted peace. So at 2 am, after getting off an actually enjoyable call, he did what he did every night, simply enjoy the night air and think. His mind somehow wandered to soulmates, thinking of the luminescent glow he had heard of only from old women who seemed older than the soulmate system itself and Victoria who had met her other half two years earlier. It sounded... nice. Really nice. Having someone to call your own, someone who understood you and was simply there, whether it was to slow dance in a quiet room or to just exist, it sounded beautiful, in a strange way. Very flawed the system was, no doubt about it, but still was a concept he couldn't help but appreciate._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________While he thought about soulmates under the stars, he might have heard a window open, but to be honest, he didn't really care._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	2. Chapter 2: Glow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neighbors turn from strangers to friends, something neither anticipated.

The next morning, a surprisingly bright and sunny Wednesday, Alec was downright exhausted - more mentally than physically, but still, it was enough to make him late and miss breakfast, barely getting to his first period English class on time. That class was often his favorite, but there was a substitute teacher with an assignment that he knew would take all class. Which was just _great _. He just wanted to rest peacefully and frankly? He did just that. Sat with his face in his hand, propped up on his desk only by his elbow, and dozed off, silently thanking his instructor for letting him choose this desk out of the sub's line of sight. Was it productive? Not at all. Was it smart? Not at all. Did he regret sleeping in class? Not at _all _. At the same time, did his friends in that class wake him up before the bell rang? Not at all, so at 8:40 in the morning - after a very beneficial hour-long nap - he was abruptly woken up by a loud ringing bell, having to awkwardly run to his next class.____

____The rest of his day was much better than the beginning, with the rest of his classes being generally easy as the year came to a close, even getting another 30 minutes of sleep outside while his best friend read comics on her phone at lunch. It was greatly appreciated, and afterward, his head finally was clear, which was both a blessing and a curse. Why? Because that means that he would be thinking, thinking about the work he should have done in first period, the food he could've eaten instead of sleeping (because there was _no _way Mr. Samm in his next period humanities class would let him eat the sandwich he had brought), and thinking about the things he'd have to do tonight. It would probably be a long night full of make-up work, but he didn't really mind, he was already going to try to see his neighbor again anyways. A strange thing to stay up for, but still it filled him with a small bit of exhilaration, something much more interesting than the college rant being told by their teacher in the middle of class.___ _ _ _

______Two hours later, after a confusing and surprisingly fun activity on ancient Greece, he got to meet up with his friends in the gym like they did almost every day after school - except for Ewelina's boyfriend who was instead using the gym as he did basketball - which was refreshing. It was an hour to simply socialize and get some homework done, but mostly to just hang out with his small group of close friends. There were four of them, five if you included Jason out on the court, and while the girls argued about the answers to a biology project, Alec and Kevin were busy shoving food in their mouths. It was usually them who were doing homework while the rest hung out or talked with their significant others, but Alec was so hungry that he didn't notice the difference. It had been hours since he had eaten, even more than usual because of him missing breakfast, so there was nothing in his mind at the moment other than "finally I can eat my sandwich," and that's what he did._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Jesus man! Slow down with that food, you aren't even tasting it!" Kevin laughed, munching on his Fritos and simply scrolling on his phone. Alec flipped him off after swallowing, to which the redhead just continued to laugh._ _ _ _ _ _

______"I haven't eaten since last night, screw off," Alec retorted, causing an eyebrow raise from his best friend next to him doing her biology work. He waved off her questioning stare and continued to eat -slower now - this time engaging in the conversation. It was much calmer for the rest of the hour, and when Ewelina's boyfriend came up and gave her a big sweaty hug followed by lots of kisses, they all took that as a hint to pack up and leave the two lovebirds to walk home together - as per usual. It was a nice routine, and as he listened to music in his earbuds on his walk home, his mind wandered again to the house across his street. He had decided the night earlier that he was going to continue to try and talk to the guy in the window, and it made his stomach do a flip, both with nerves and excitement. In their small town of maybe 700 people, everyone knew everyone, except for the kid in that house. Some of the adults remember the little kid version of the Lakes kid, but after that? They had nothing but a story or two and a quick appearance._ _ _ _ _ _

______In what felt like two minutes, Alec was home. With a small grin, after taking out his earbuds, he went inside, getting to bask in the quiet for a few more hours before his little sister and parents got home. It was very welcoming, and after getting another sandwich, he went up to his room and just did some homework. It was mostly last-minute science and English assignments along with his photoshop final (which the blond _finally _was making progress on), but it still was enough to keep him working until about 10 pm. Still, not late enough to make him go to sleep, especially if he wanted to talk to his neighbor, but later than he preferred to be awake, seeing as he woke up before the sunrise. Instead of just giving it a rest and getting to bed on time since he had, I don't know, _school _the next day, he turned on a cosmology masterclass he'd started a week earlier and continued to learn about the math side of gravity and planets themselves, taking notes and doing the problems presented. It was a side of science that he had never really looked into, often preferring learning more about live creatures than the world that they all live in, but it had become remarkably interesting the more he looked into it and learning about it made time fly._____ _ _ _ _ _

__________When the clock neared 2 AM, almost two hours after his mother had come up and told him goodnight, leaving him to his own quiet devices, Alec - now settled into a big yellow hoodie that had once belonged to Kevin - went to the window, opening it quietly and leaning out. It was a little warmer as they reached early June but in the wind kept it nice, letting clouds pass by and show the stars, making him smile. He could see why his neighbor did this so often, just looking at the sky and breathing felt like a wave of calm washing over him. At the thought of the guy with the raven black hair, he took his eyes off the sky and looked over the window, seeing exactly what he had expected. The kid was out again, except this time his neighbor was looking right back at him, looking vaguely surprised and extremely suspicious, his eyes narrowed and posture tenser. Alec couldn't see his face in high detail, but his body language gave away more than his face would have anyways. He noticed that while half of his face seemed to be darker than the other, his right eye was much paler, as though his pupil was nonexistent, something that reminded him of a scar he'd seen on a burn survivor on television. The stare was both threatening and something that drew the blond in._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Hi," He called quietly, nervously, across the street to break the silence of the night. The kid seemed surprised and waved slowly and cautiously before looking as though he wanted to head back inside even though he had just come out his window. He hesitated, and a spike of fear hit Alec, seeing the answers to the town mystery slip through his fingers as the boy slip back into his room with nothing he could do about it. It felt like a _bust _. Well, mostly. On the bright side, he got to see the other and know the drunkard's son was at least responsive. But, knowing staying awake wouldn't do anything more Alec simply sighed and fell back onto his bed. It wasn't discouraging, it was more enticing than anything, but he knew he'd need to get some sleep if he were to try the same thing tomorrow.  
* - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - *  
"Hello?" Victoria's groggy voice asked through the phone, extremely confused as to why her oldest real friend was calling her at 2 in the morning. The person in question paced in his room, one hand holding the phone as the other messed with his hair, not necessarily responding right away. Seeing the teen across the street shouldn't have rattled him as much as it did but then again _holy hell _his neighbor tried to talk to him across the road in the middle of the night. He could hear Victoria sigh and the shuffling of her moving around on the other side of the phone, but honestly, his mind was going fast, not processing the noise._____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________"What happened Ovien?" She asked with a silent eye roll and he snapped back to the present, becoming aware of the crickets behind her words and the breeze coming through his still open window. His pacing stopped for a minute, taking a moment before responding._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________"You aren't going to believe this - actually you might - but holy hell Vicky my neighbor just tried to talk to me from across the street, the freckly blonde one who wears those Hawaiin shirts, and I don't know why or how he knows I chill outside my window at 2 am-" The raven-haired teen rambled as his friend on the other side sighed, probably with her hand pinching in between eyebrows, and stopped him from continuing with a simple question._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________"Why is this important?" She asked tiredly, silently wishing she could go back to sleep but also knowing that her friend needed her, he was probably pulling his hair out at the sight of someone in real life giving him attention. Yes, it was sad, but it was normal for him so getting attention caused him much more panic. He stopped and she could tell that he had almost _definitely _called her on impulse, laughing to herself silently. Ovien thought about it for a second and kind of just sighed.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________"I don't know, I guess I'm just worried? Anxious? Surprised? So bored of living in this goddamn house that something happened and my mind freaked out?" There was a beat of silence, "... yeah, I'm beginning to see what you're saying," he finished with an embarrassed laugh, one that was forced but there nonetheless, sitting down scratching the back of his neck. She simply hummed on the other line._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________"Well, don't worry too much. From what I've heard visiting, he's a good kid. It's not like he's gonna be planning to rush and rob the house, he's probably just curious about rumors or whatever," She reassured him and he nodded along, realizing how insane this call probably made him out to be. If it were anyone other than Vicky, they'd probably have scoffed and just told him he was overreacting, shutting out the isolated boy. He murmured thanks and heard his friend yawn, remembering that it was the middle of the night and most people were asleep at that time, so he let her go back to sleep, apologizing quickly and awkwardly while she brushed off the apology, reminding her that she was available any time, and left the call. After she went back to bed in her house in the city, he collapsed onto his bed with a sigh, god he was a burden sometimes, and brought his phone out again even though he had only put it away a few minutes earlier. His friend Mike would probably be up by now, seeing as the guy lived across the country and it would be around 8 am where he was, but at the same time, he felt guilty for wanting to run to his friends with his problems. Even though early on in their friendship about 4 years earlier they had agreed that it was perfectly alright to rant to each other whenever they needed, Ovien still felt bad. He would probably be feeding the horses on the property or making breakfast for his family, having a good morning, and the teen didn't want to interrupt that with his random conversations. Instead, he rubbed his face and washed up for bed, before relaxing into the black of sleep, a certain neighbor subconsciously on his mind._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________For the next week, the same thing happened every night. When Ovien poked his head out the window to relax, he was met with the teen across the street's blue-eyed stare. It wasn't anything threatening, more curious than anything, but still, it was unsettling. The attention was never something he had asked for, but every night the kid would say 'hi' ever so softly, both because it was especially late into the night, and as if not to scare him away. It was both a blessing and a curse, getting to just lean out the window and exist next to someone because while it was comforting to know someone was there, he also knew that if he let more people in than the ones he already had, they'd realize how socially awkward and how so, so _not normal _he was and leave him right after he gets attached. It scared him that someone wanted to talk to him without knowing anything other than rumors, especially when these rumors were fairly negative, but the 15-year-old's presence was nice to have. Something he had missed in the time without Victoria, someone who gave him a reliable to-a-schedule person to lean on.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________________Slowly, Ovien began to open up and talk a little as well, leaving later each night and even bidding the other goodbye on the sixth night a full hour after emerging from his room. The seventh night was the best though, one where he talked to the other more than usual, maybe - just maybe - letting him take his walls down.  
* - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - *  
Every night that Alec went out and leaned against his window and simply breathed next to his neighbor across the street, he made progress, causing him to smile at the thought. It had been six days already, and he'd gotten a little more with the raven-haired teen's appearance every time. At first, it was a wave again, but instead of leaving he stayed another fifteen minutes, two days later it was a quiet 'hey,' in response to his ever-persistent 'hi's, the sixth night they stayed outside for a full hour before the other went inside bidding him goodnight with a smile. A smile which he kept even when he woke up the next day, not going away until lunch when Ewelina began to tease him and prod at him, asking, no _pleading _him to 'spill the beans,' seeing as he had kept quiet about the whole ordeal. Only then did he notice it, which made him laugh but still, he didn't say anything, lying and saying he had just made a lot of progress on his photoshop final, something that wasn't technically a lie. For the three, four if you count their afterschool hour, leftover hours of school he kept more of a reign in on his small smile, though it didn't go away.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________That night, as he had done for the past six days, he opened his window and leaned out, being met with an already smiling neighbor. He greeted the other politely and quietly, to which the other did the same before they went silent. It was comfortable, but still, the 16-year-old looked more troubled than normal, so troubled that he could see it across the road._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________"Hey, you alright?" Alec asked softly, leaving the question vague enough that it wasn't poking fun, but still a question. The other perked up a bit and rubbed his hands together seemingly nervous. The blond's mind suddenly thought back to the 'dragon' statement Ewelina's father had made and he nearly laughed at the fact that it was so completely _wrong _. He was just a teenager with fluffy untamed curls and who wore forest green hoodies with big sleeves and paint-splattered sweaters that absolutely looked like they belonged to someone else, who was timid but intelligent and looked at the stars like they were superheroes. The 16-year-old would never admit it, Alec knew him enough to know that, but he just wanted to smile and see the world.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________"Uh, my name is Ovien, just so you know I guess," He, Ovien, said, making Alec smile bright enough to see from the other's house, even visible from those same superhero stars his neighbor loved so much. It was almost as bright as the house he was leaning out of, and Ovien couldn't help but smile too._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________"I'm Alec, nice to meet you," He replied, and the silence resumed, comfortable and calm, and needless to say, the smile the blond had that night bled into the next, causing even more questions from his friends. This continued for two more weeks, where he learned more about the other's quiet life, the people that kept him sane, and he gave the same. It was something that brought them closer, even though they hadn't gotten any closer in the sense of distance, something that made both their nights the part of the day they waited for, even when it messed with their sleep schedules and school routines, it was something that slowly helped both of them. It was... nice. A solid month after initially talking, the blond finally got Ovien's number and he wouldn't admit it out loud but he was almost ecstatic. He didn't text him often, but on nights where he was going to someone's house, or Ewelina slept at his place, or during lunch when his friends were engrossed in their little world, the raven-haired teen on the other side of the screen was almost always there to talk. The conversations were brief and sounded guarded on Ovien's end, but that was alright because they didn't push each other, simply talking and allowing each other to exist in each other's universes, which was refreshing compared to Alec's friend group. They were an amazing group, but sometimes it felt as though they knew him too well and he couldn't relax with them, always needing to stay active or bouncing from topic to topic, when sometimes he just wanted to live in their atmospheres quietly._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________One night in mid-July, Ewelina sat on Alec's bed playing a Mario game on his PlayStation huffing as she lost yet another round, complaining about the games she'd lost to her brother and how he was definitely cheating, him simply humming along at the right moments texting on his phone. Suddenly she stopped mid-sentence and turned to him, her eyes flashing many different emotions at once, causing him to put his phone down on his chest and raise an eyebrow in a silent question._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________"You been talking to someone?" She asked, a small teasing smile on her face, he glared lightly before simply sighing in defeat._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________"I mean, I guess," the blond mumbled, scratching the back of his neck as his friend of 7 years snorted in laughter, giving him a look of disbelief._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________"Are you serious? I haven't seen you this smiley and relaxed in _years _, literal years Alec. You get a notification and I swear to the good Lord above you light up like a lightbulb, it's insane, in a good way of course but _woah, _" She continued, putting up a hand to stop whatever he was about to say that would tell her otherwise. Alec knew she wasn't wrong, he knew that a smile came to his face whenever he got the text from his friend and the frown that followed if it wasn't him, and the fact that he would just block out everything around him sometimes when talking with his neighbor but he didn't realize how obvious he was, it made him laugh nervously._____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________"So, who is it? And no you can't shrug off my question, you know I'll just steal your phone while you sleep," The brunette finished, awaiting an answer. An answer that Alec both wanted to give and didn't want to give, for many reasons. It wasn't that he was embarrassed, or that Ewelina would give him crap for it, she had an expression that was simply open and reassuring. He wanted to tell her, looking into her eyes that said, 'whatever you say, I'll support you and keep you safe,' and that's what swayed him, knowing that it was ok to say anything. He had kept everything quiet for over a month and the two had become closer, telling one person wouldn't scare him back into the dark of his house, right? His mind spiraled for a solid minute, but he stopped himself and sighed for what felt like the millionth time this conversation._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________Ewelina could tell something had been going on for at least a month, the bright subconscious smiles upon getting a notification, the fact that the boy who used to be so strict about getting the right amount of sleep would come into school with eye bags and bright blue eyes full of joy, the ticks he had when they'd walk home together glancing at his neighbor across the street's house giving it a tiny wave thinking the other wasn't looking, there were a lot of things she had picked up on. Anyone who knew him could tell the difference. The only other times he had been like this was in a past relationship and whenever he got to see the soulmate system in action, both things she suspected may be happening. It was no surprise when she put two and two together with Kevin's help (more like input, not actual help he was mostly there just to get a free ride to the corner store on their way to one of Jason's games), but she didn't want to embarrass Alec into staying quiet. Honestly, she just wanted the teen she knew like a brother to be happy like any friend would. So when she asked about who he was talking to, she didn't want to seem threatening, simply _there _.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________________"It's not really like that," he began looking up at his glow-in-the-dark star-covered ceiling and she nodded, "but it's, uh, it's the guy across the street." He finished, not meeting her eyes. Her jaw nearly dropped in disbelief, having to instead start talking rather than showing her surprise because how in the _hell _did he start talking to the teen who had never been seen, was isolated in his home, lived with a drunkard - and probably was one - and stayed away from people at all costs. _No one _had heard from him, seen him, or really interacted with the family aside from the few - like her father - who even were allowed onto the property who only rarely got a small nod of thanks from a teen dressed head to toe in black. The town's only real mystery, and Alec, her Hinduist friend who rode horses on weekends and loved his sister's Matz Ball soup with all his being, had managed to not only see the teen but had become his friend and talked daily to the Lakes' kid. She would have guessed anything but, but with the blond's sheepish and awkward smile all she could do was smile brightly._____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________________"Mr. Lakes' son? That guy's kid? No shit! Alec! How did you even manage that?" She exclaimed with a laugh and the other shushed her - reminding her it was 10 pm and his little sister was home - before snickering himself as she bombarded him with more questions. At the point where the questions got outlandish and _extremely _personal, however, he put up a hand and shot her a glare that made her laughter bubble right back up to the surface, almost breaking but going still. He then told her what had happened in the past month and a half, and she stayed quiet during most of it, though her thin honey-warm eyes looked at him with such delight that it made Alec feel warm inside. He didn't know that this approval of his raven-haired neighbor was something he needed, but now that he had it, he too couldn't help but smile along with her.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	3. Chapter 3: Glow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Sunday in July was one of the strangest they had experienced but ended in the best way possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One chapter left, it'll be an epilogue though

When he woke up, he could already tell the atmosphere had changed. The air often filled with the smell of vomit and whiskey was tense, electric in the worst way possible. As soon as his eyes opened, he wished for the luxury of going back to sleep but noticed immediately that it wouldn't happen. It wouldn't happen because he could hear glass breaking downstairs and the smell of blood was potent, even from his upstairs bedroom. Ovien got up and took a breath in the muggy end of July air, mentally steeling himself for whatever his father was dealing with, then unlocked his door and went downstairs as quietly as possible, hearing every single creak of the stairs in full volume. When he got down to the living room, what he saw made him nearly hurl up the food he had eaten the night before and time seemed to freeze. 

The living room was a flurry of broken glass and blood on the dingy once-white carpets. It wasn't a lot, but the vibrant red drips stood out, it's smell making it even more so, and the smell, _god _it was horrid. A mix of old alcohol stains, body odor, vomit, and everything in between that made the boy in the green pajamas feel like a ten-year-old again. A small kid realizing that life wasn't playing 'the floor is lava' with his friend at a fancy party, that his life wasn't sober storytimes and goodnight kisses, but rather waking up to his father falling, ending up drunk and asleep on the stairs, glass in hand along with a photo album that he had seen time and time again. Where on good days his father would drink while listening to high-school prom slow-dancing music and fill the photobook with tears the same way the liquid filled his cup, and on the bad scream at the sky and anything in its path, asking why, why can't an angel named June come back, almost wrecking pages of the book but simply becoming a numb husk when realizing what he'd nearly done. He looked like a robot broken on the floor when he would become this husk per se, still and silent with his legs and arms at angles that would have hurt badly if he were a real person. The reality was that his father was in no way the hero he thought he was, and that had terrified the small kid, still did as the 16-year-old surveyed what was in front of him. He was a 40-year-old man who was full of grief, was angry, was _lost _, looking at his son as though he was the problem, not because he was, but because of the memories of his past. And as the teenager stood in the room where his father was hiding in front of the couch, fireplace prodder pointed toward the kitchen and blood drilling down his leg, pant leg torn from the knee down, he felt the same. Like a ghost watching someone fall apart without there being anything he could do, and when his father turned to him, it was his turn to break.____

____"Father?" He called out, hitting himself mentally at how young, how _vulnerable _he sounded. The man turned, and his wide brown eyes were so strikingly different from the warm dark chocolate eyes he was used to seeing, his friend Mike's eyes, it caught him off guard, wondering how the difference in the shade could change so much when the colors were so similar. They were big and dripping with white terror, so much so that Ovien seemed to absorb it like a sponge, growing scared himself. His father was frantic, scared, injured, almost helpless, slapping himself in the face before looking at him more closely, as if to make sure that it was indeed his son.___ _ _ _

______"Ovien! We have to leave, there's _something _in the kitchen and it's telling me things, that he knows where more drinks are, how to stop all the pain, ways to find June again - we have to go, pack up your bags and help me up, we have to go," He stuttered out frantically, struggling to get upright and upon doing so he took his son by the shoulders, grip so tight he felt it in his bones. Something was not ok, it was beyond clear as the man continued speaking rapidly, looking back to the empty kitchen then to him, like a violent headshake as he looked back to the room void of any beings other than the rotten tomatoes on the counter. He was seeing things, had finally snapped, and Ovien had one thought in his head, whole body agreeing. His father was insane and he was in _danger _. The fireplace poker his father had clutched earlier was only an arm's length away and if he saw another figment of his hurtful imagination the teenager could get seriously hurt. Going against all fair judgment and his instincts, he slowly and gently pried his father's hands off his shoulders as the man continued to speak, all jibberish now, his mind going so has his mouth had failed to keep up, then he looked his father, his old _hero _, right in the eyes and stopped him with six words._______ _ _ _ _ _

____________"Dad, no one is there. Mom's gone." The raven-haired boy said, and his father stopped dead in his tracks, looking more broken than any man should. How could someone so splintered break even more? Ovien didn't know the answer, but he did know an example, the one standing in front of him. Then he saw his father's eyes fill with something else; anger. All at once, his red flags went up and there was nothing he could do other than step back and put up his hands in surrender, mind running with every last worst-scenario. The man in his forties looked at him with such anger, such disappointment that it hurt._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________"You don't know _anything _I see. She was here just a few weeks ago, visiting me before leaving again, reminding me that _you _were still here. You don't know what the man in the kitchen offered me, it was a chance to fix everything, to fix the life I have! The mistakes I've made! So that June could be with us again, we could be a _family _again, and you don't want that!" He nearly bellowed, shaking the floors and making Ovien almost fall. His words were insanity, he knew June - his mother - hadn't visited for she had died when he was born, but it still _hurt _. It hurt like a snake bite, like the flames that had engulfed him at age eight, leaving him the way he was now, it was _painful _because it was backed by emotion. It was all his father's disappointments, grief, and anger toward himself that he projected onto others rather than looking for someone to help him. He had stopped drinking no more than a month earlier, and it still affected him so much, making his emotions things he had to deal with, which to Ovien was almost worse than when he did drink. The boy's normal wasn't dealing with emotion, it was hiding from a monster downstairs, which he had accepted and prepared for, but this? This was so insanely and drastically different that his mind became muddled, only having a few persistent thoughts. He needed to leave, lock himself in his room, call Victoria, and get _out _. He couldn't live with a screaming parent dealing with the feelings he had purposefully shoved away eight years earlier when he started drinking. There was a butterfly effect on everything that had been done all those years ago and it had come back to bite them, and it bit _hard _. So he argued, he yelled against his dad, telling him he was insane and the man retaliated with words more than harmful. It lasted for what felt like hours and was probably only a little over 45 minutes, which had escalated to the point of physical danger, where he had pulled the plug, rushing upstairs and locking his door, pushing a bookshelf against it for extra protection. _That's _when he collapsed, that's when all the anger left him and what moved in was instead regret, disappointment, and the longing for someone to simply wrap their arms around him and say 'it's going to be okay' because when he said it, it was anything but believable._________________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________________So at 11 in the morning, he called Victoria even though she would most likely be at lunch with her parents. He called once, twice, and on the third, she finally picked up, immediately telling him she was so sorry for missing the first two. It didn't matter to him and he wanted to say that, but he just couldn't. He couldn't swallow the lump in his throat, it was suffocating, he just wanted her to be here, so badly. His best friend had taken him into the city a week earlier, but he missed her like a bigger sister he never had and when he needed her now, she felt a thousand hours away._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________________"You alright?" She asked, seeming scared for both asking and for the answer she'd get, putting her hand up to stop her dad's angry rant in their dining room with pleading eyes asking if she could just have 1 minute before he continued to yell about her future. That's when all she could hear were sobs escaping her best friend. They were rough, loud, and she knew that she had to drive over _now _because it was a rule - not one that she liked at all but a rule in Ovien's eyes - that he didn't cry. Not in front of others, and never this bad, it almost made her break, both because he was her friend, but also because he felt every sob as if it were her own, as though it was one of the calls when they were 13 where Victoria would come on sniffling worrying about never finding a soulmate or the things her father and mother made her do that would turn into her crying and him just being there and saying it's _okay _, and now it was her turn to be there for him and she was an hour away. Time seemed to slow and her mind sped up, saying reassuringly to the other who had calmed down by the smallest degree a simple 'Just breathe. I'll be over as soon as possible,' and rushing out of the dining room, her father a step behind her beginning to talk again. It wasn't a concerned question as to what was going on or the nod that he could put off the talk for after she got back, no it was him yelling at her that their talk wasn't over as she put on her boots and swung her emergency backpack over her shoulder, it was him telling her sternly 'young lady I forbid you from leaving this house,' to which she bit back at him. They were always like this, him thinking he knew what was best and her being her own independent woman who was not going to be held down based on someone else's view of her. They were always angry, it was nothing new, but to the boy with the black curls on the other end of the phone, it was too much. He was still crying hot wet tears, but he felt numb, rigid as his mind raced faster than any car could drive. None of the thoughts were sensible, and the yelling on the opposite line was drowning but he just couldn't swim to the surface._____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________________________________He felt like a husk, just like his father.  
* - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - *  
It was 8 pm, nearly nine hours after what had happened across the street. Alec had no clue, but with the radio silence on Ovien's end and sudden hour-long call he and his friend Artemis had, the day had just felt awkward, like everything that could go wrong did just that. His older sister who said she was coming for lunch had gotten wrapped up in a problem at home had to postpone her arrival until later that night, right after he washed the cars and outside of the house it rained heavily and stayed raining all day, his friend's girlfriend not being able to visit, the Wi-Fi at his house went out an hour earlier and hadn't turned back on, it was overall just not a good Sunday. It was an odd day._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________________He was reading a book quietly listening to slow music on a neat record player his father had found in the garage when the chaos erupted. His room was dark and it was raining outside, like it had been for the past 5 hours, a soft glow coming from the hallway light and a small lamp when suddenly he heard a knock on his window, causing him to jump up from his bed and go over wearily. It could've just been a piece of debris from the storm, but something in his gut told him differently, saying it was best to open the window, even if he didn't want to. When he opened it, however, he was met with something he had never suspected, it was his neighbor Ovien, rain-soaked and holding onto a thick tree branch for dear life. He looked awful, and on instinct, as if they had done this a million times before, Alec let him in. The air was thick for a moment, just the two staring at each other - one in sweat pants and a hoodie and one in a windbreaker soaked to the bone in cold rainwater - before Ovien began to crack, first his eyes going glossy, then he started to tremble, to which the blond simply took his arms with his own, hoping to settle him. It wasn't something that he could've prepared for, but he was just there, open to help if the older boy wanted it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________________"I'm sorry, I-I don't know why-" He said, voice cracking as soon as he started before cutting off completely, as though he couldn't speak. Alec hummed and opened his arms to offer a hug, and _that's _when the teen drenched in rain's composure shattered, falling into the hug and crying, getting snot, rain, and tears on the yellow fabric he cried into, but Alec didn't mind, quietly comforting him like he'd done so many times before for his sisters, friends, and just because it was Ovien and he needed someone to be there. So he was, and the two simply stood there in an embrace before pulling back and pulling themselves back together, Ovien even laughing as he wiped his eyes and sighed.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________________"Thanks," he whispered with an affectionate smile which the blond returned still holding the other's scarred arms in his. Only then did he actually get a good look at his friend of two months, now noticing the small things like the small scar across the right corner of his mouth, the difference between the scarred right half of his face and blind eye, a stark contrast between the caramel and chocolate of his left. He noticed how when he laughed it reached his eyes and made them twinkle, glow even, more so after just crying. He was about to say something - probably something unintelligent and showing how much of a dork he was - when suddenly he heard something from the doorway. It was Olivia, leaning on the doorway frame, arms crossed but expression giving away her mischievous childlike intent, which made Ovien stiffen and Alec laugh nervously at his sister's ever evident smirk._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________________"You're glowing," was all she said with finger-guns before the young adult took off with a salute and a proud grin, undoubtedly going back downstairs to eat more food, as per usual. It took them a second to process but when they did, the room became full of rambling and laughing as they both finally got to meet in person - to meet each other not as neighbors, but as soulmates glowing and bright - joking and talking for a solid half hour before they stilled. A comfortable quiet, slow music playing faintly from the hour earlier, much like the many nights they had shared across the street under the stars, except this time they were together, sitting on the carpet hand in hand. It was soft, soothing, only changing when Alec stood up, a fond smile on his face as he offered a hand._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________________"Want to stay for dinner?" The blond said with a lopsided grin, to which Ovien snorted and rose, taking the hand, standing up, and nodding. He asked for a minute to change into some borrowed clothes and wash up, now a little nervous for meeting the group so close to his soulmates' but when he looked in the mirror at his reflection, seeing his red nose and glassy eyes, wet hair still drooping into his face, he'd never been happier._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	4. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three years later.

"Ma! We have to go! Seriously, I think you have enough pictures!" Alec laughed as his mom took another picture with her phone, trying to make sure she had the perfect one. She shushed him yet again, which made him huff and the 19-year-old next to him snicker at their antics, watching as she straightened her son's raven black tie for the ninth time in the last ten minutes. Still, once he got a glare from the blond, he ran his hand through his surprisingly tamed hair and checked his watch, wincing at the time.

"We really have to go Ms. Flint, you know Ewelina will kill us if we're late. _Especially _today," Ovien tried, and the woman sighed, begrudgingly agreeing and letting them go, making them promise to have fun and take pictures, watching from her porch as they got into the back of Victoria's truck, not leaving until she could no longer see her son and his soulmate as they drove off to the school. It was a muggy Saturday night, but the seniors didn't care, they all just sat in the bed of the car - minus Artemis who was up in the front with her girlfriend - and joked, laughed, with many of the couples simply cuddling, looking forward to the Prom they had been waiting on for weeks. The duos were generally all matching their significant others, Alec and Ovien matching in an emerald green color scheme - making the golden-yellow corsage on Ovien's wrist stand out like a star, Ewelina and Jason in more reds and whites, and Kevin and a few of his other friends all going stag with flashy sunglasses and matching black and white formalwear. Artemis and Victoria were their own pair however, upstanding everyone with their appearances, taking this as an opportunity to go out on their own in the city, simply meeting their friends and driving them to prom before going off on their own journey. They were an insane group and the blond loved every second of it, from the awful karaoke Kevin had insisted the group did on the way to the fact that Ovien was next to him, arm around his shoulder with the fondest smile Alec had ever seen every time he looked toward his shorter boyfriend.__

__A few minutes later, while Jason was talking to the guys about sports, the boy with the golden corsage nudged him and pointed up to the stars, which they both simply looked at, existing in their own little universe. It reminded him of the night three years earlier when he first talked to the other, and he relived the moment in his mind, all while Ovien sat next to him seeing the cosmos reflected in Alec's crystalline eyes as he looked toward the sky._ _

__He was beautiful._ _

__There were many times where he thought the blond was handsome, cute, hot, etcetera, but tonight looking up at the stars, he was _beautiful _. He thanked all the gods he knew that he got to call the other his soulmate because seeing him here, in the back of a rusty old pick up truck on their way to their senior prom, made all their hardships - all the childhood trauma he had worked to leave behind, all the legal problems he and his father had to deal with now, everything that had ever made him want to just lie down and go to sleep for a week - _so _worth it. And at the end of their night, standing in the back of the gym as they slow danced to music that reminded him of Alec whenever he heard it, he said thank you again, but this time to the blond himself. It wasn't said through those two words though, instead, it was said in three, three simple words that put together was something the universe had said time and time again._____ _

______Those three words? A small, tentative, and entirely true 'I love you.'_ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is really sweet and I love these characters oh my goD

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Give me feedback below, if you wanna
> 
> Insta: @bellartwork23


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